"Iron Man 3" becomes fifth highest grossing movie

The Marvel comic book adaptation starring Robert Downey Jr. has proven incredibly popular with superhero fans, grossing a whopping $1.14bn (£760.5m) worldwide in just one month and knocking 2011's 'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' out of the top five movies of all time, according to official box office figures.

The film - which opened in the UK in April and in May in the US - ranks just behind 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2's $1.34bn (£889m) takings in 2011.

'The Avengers' ranks at number three, with a worldwide tally of $1.51bn (£1bn). The team-up film cemented the public's interest in superhero mythology, and also features Robert Downey Jr.'s titular Iron Man character.

James Cameron's epic big budget adventures, 'Avatar' and 'Titanic', will be hard to beat, however, and remain ruling box office champions.

'Avatar' surpassed 'Titanic' as the highest-grossing film ever in 2010, with both having both made more than $2bn (£1.32bn) worldwide.